Feminist author Flo Perry explains why she sent book about sex to Love Island contestants

‘Sex isn’t a thing to be ashamed of’

Feminist author Flo Perry has explained why she sent a copy of her book about sex to Love Island contestants, saying that sex shouldn’t be something that people feel “ashamed” of.

On Wednesday, Perry appeared on ITV morning talk show Lorraine to discuss her debut book How To Have Feminist Sex: A Fairly Graphic Guide and the stigma that continues to surround the topic.

During the interview, Lorraine Kelly asked Perry why she chose to send a copy of her book to former Love Island contestants.

The writer explained that while she is a “big fan” of the reality television show, she frequently finds herself wishing they were “enjoying themselves more” and not feeling “so worried” about sex.

“The number of people they’ve slept with is always a big moment in the show where they’re like, ‘Don’t judge me because I’ve slept with 25 people’,” Perry said.

“I just want them to know that it’s ok and that they’re gorgeous and they should just enjoy their newfound fame and sexual power.”

Perry added that she wants “everyone to know that sex isn’t a thing to be ashamed of”.

“Everyone does it,” she stated emphatically. “I think that it’s good to be more relaxed talking about it, because I think people even struggle to talk about sex with the person they’re having sex with.

“Opening those channels of communication is really important for having the sex that you want to have.”

Perry tells The Independent she is yet to receive a response from the Love Island contestants who were sent her book.

“They are probably very busy doing club appearances and getting Pretty Little Thing deals, but if they would like to read my book in their precious free time I would be honoured,” she says.

During her appearance on Lorraine, the author explained to Kelly how she defines “feminist sex”, outlining that it is “all about having the sex that you want to have rather than the sex that you should be having”.

“I felt like there was a lot of conversation in the media about how sex is a source of trauma for a lot of women, and I want to remind everyone through my book that sex is meant to be fun and a source of joy and that’s the point of it, really,” Perry said.

Perry explains to The Independent that she believes it is “important to have a shame-free sex life”.

“Shame makes it embarrassing and difficult to talk about sex,” the writer outlines. “And talking about sex is the key to better sex.”

One of the biggest talking points of this year’s series of Love Island came when contestant Curtis Pritchard revealed that his favourite sex position is the “eagle”.

Following the professional dancer’s admission, an influx of viewers who rushed to google what the position entails caused a sex website to crash.

“I wonder how many people are currently googling ‘the eagle’...” tweeted reality television personality Bobby Norris.

“Lmao everyone in the country has tried to find out what the eagle is at the same time,” another Twitter user added.